Alan Zekelman

Early life

Alan grew up in Windsor, Ontario. His father, Harry Zekelman, was an entrepreneur who founded Atlas Tube in 1984. Watching his father build a business from scratch instilled in Alan a lifelong respect for hard work and manufacturing.

As a young man, Alan pursued higher education with a focus on business and finance. He earned a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Toronto, where he learned about corporate operations. He then studied at the University of Rochester and graduated with a Master of Science in Applied Economics. This specialized background in market dynamics and trade proved to be an asset when it came time to scale the family business globally.

Career

Alan’s life took a sudden turn in 1986, when his father passed away two years after founding Atlas Tube. He and his brothers, Barry and Clayton, found themselves managing a brand-new company during an incredibly hard time. Despite their youth, the brothers took full ownership and put all their energy into making Atlas Tube a success. They used their combined skills to manage the business by themselves.

The brothers focused heavily on keeping manufacturing lean, empowering their workers, and investing back into new production technologies. Doing this allowed them to offer a wide range of steel tube sizes and significantly reduce shipping times. The company grew very quickly, from a single local mill in Harrow, Ontario, into a structural steel powerhouse, capturing a large portion of both the Canadian and American markets.

By 2006, global investors had started paying more attention to the business. The family sold a majority stake to the Carlyle Group for $1.5 billion CAD, leading to the creation of JMC Steel Group. This led to the merging of Atlas Tube, John Maneely Co., and Sharon Tube. However, the brothers never lose their passion for the business. In 2011, demonstrating their long-term belief in the industry, the Zekelman family bought back full control of the company.

In 2016, they officially renamed the enterprise Zekelman Industries to reflect their position as the continent’s largest independent steel pipe and tube manufacturer. As an owner and active member of the Board of Directors, Alan helped steer the company through major modern expansions. They moved into innovative industries such as Z Modular (construction) and acquired key assets, including Western Tube and EXLTUBE. Now, with massive, state-of-the-art mills in North America and a workforce of over 3,200 people, the business his father started on a whim has an annual production capacity that exceeds 3.3 million tons.

Net Worth

According to Forbes, Alan Zekelman’s approximate net worth is $1.9 billion.